Avery Bradley's defense

[LooseCannon]

Small sample size and all that, but ESPNBOston's Chris Forsberg notes the following:

And his defense has been as excellent as expected (allowing only 0.621 points per play, according to Synergy). Boston's defensive rating (102.2 points per 100 possessions) drops 10 points when Bradley is on the floor (and rises 20.4 when he's not).

I very much hope that Stevens will take a defense-first approach to his lineup and that Bradley remains a starter when Rondo comes back.  I think Jeff Green ability to play defense consistently and correctly will be the key to figuring out what five Stevens goes with when Rondo returns.

[Celtics18]

Small sample size and all that, but ESPNBOston's Chris Forsberg notes the following:

And his defense has been as excellent as expected (allowing only 0.621 points per play, according to Synergy). Boston's defensive rating (102.2 points per 100 possessions) drops 10 points when Bradley is on the floor (and rises 20.4 when he's not).

I very much hope that Stevens will take a defense-first approach to his lineup and that Bradley remains a starter when Rondo comes back.  I think Jeff Green ability to play defense consistently and correctly will be the key to figuring out what five Stevens goes with when Rondo returns.

I feel very confident that Stevens will try the Rondo/Bradley back court as a starting unit.  He seems to very high on Avery, and is going to want him on the floor as much as possible. 

It's nice to know that the numbers back up what my eyes have been telling me about Avery's defensive impact. 

[Fafnir]

Given he's going to be a RFA I'm sure Bradley will still get heavy rotation minutes the whole season. Have to see what he can become with the decision time coming soon.

I can't say I'm shocked that Jordan Crawford makes our defense a heck of a lot worse.

[pearljammer10]

I hope very much that we trade Avery Bradley.

[kozlodoev]

Small sample size and all that, but ESPNBOston's Chris Forsberg notes the following:

And his defense has been as excellent as expected (allowing only 0.621 points per play, according to Synergy). Boston's defensive rating (102.2 points per 100 possessions) drops 10 points when Bradley is on the floor (and rises 20.4 when he's not).

I very much hope that Stevens will take a defense-first approach to his lineup and that Bradley remains a starter when Rondo comes back.  I think Jeff Green ability to play defense consistently and correctly will be the key to figuring out what five Stevens goes with when Rondo returns.

Well, he has a lot to compensate for:

The lingering concern for Bradley at the moment is his offense. The fourth-year guard is shooting 25 percent beyond 5 feet this season. What's more, according to Synergy Sports data, he's averaging 0.527 points per play, which ranks him in the sixth percentile among all league players (of those with at least 50 possessions finished, Bradley ranks 53rd out of 53 players in points per possession).

He's pretty much "defending" himself better than he defends the opposition.

[LooseCannon]

I hope very much that we trade Avery Bradley.

I hope very much that Rondo-Bradley is the starting backcourt for the next five years.

[PhoSita]

Crawford vs. Bradley presents a classic dilemma for a rebuilding team -- are you going to prioritize offense, or defense?

With Bradley on the floor at point, this team is never going to be able to run a decent NBA offense.  With Crawford playing as the primary ball-handler, the defense is always going to be absolutely atrocious.

So do you focus mainly on teaching these guys to play NBA defense as a unit and take whatever offense you get out of that?  Or do you focus on teaching them to run a legitimate NBA offensive system and set plays and try to bring the defense along later?

I think it's a tough question to answer, because there just isn't enough talent there to try to do both.

[kozlodoev]

With Bradley on the floor at point, this team is never going to be able to run a decent NBA offense.  With Crawford playing as the primary ball-handler, the defense is always going to be absolutely atrocious.

I think Crawford is catching unnecessary flak for his playmaking.

Sure, he'll have an occasional (perhaps even frequent) head-scratcher, but he also ends up scoring a lot of  those.

Also, he's shown a knack for finding people in space, both on cuts and in transition.

As a matter of fact, I'd label his playmaking skills as "developing", and as far as running a team is concerned, he's head and shoulders ahead of Bradley, and may possibly improve even more if he gets his head screwed right.